Chapter 4
"Olivia…" he murmured through the pain, hoping I would ask what happened and handle it for him.
Even without him saying anything, I knew exactly what he wanted from me.
He had been caught in a staged accident, with a man demanding 70 thousand dollars for lost wages and medical expenses.
In my previous life, I had handled it for him even while heavily pregnant. I confronted the rogue and argued on his behalf, while he only had to show up at work. At the final stage in court, he opted for a private settlement with no compensation, making all my effort feel like a joke.
This time, I was smarter. I pretended not to hear.
As he talked about the compensation, he kept his eyes on me, clearly waiting for me to say something different.
"Although our savings aren't much, 70 thousand dollars is still manageable. Honey, be more careful when you drive next time. Don't be so reckless."
He had expected me to leap up, righteously accuse the man of staging the accident, and demand justice. Everything in his tone hinted at it.
"Then I suppose I should go talk to him," he said.
"Can't you go, Olivia? Samuel's still at work," Riley said, pursing her lips.
"I need to take care of your mother," I said, nodding toward Charlotte, who was still watching Riley like a hawk.
The memory of her earlier outburst and the insult still lingered in her mind. I had considered letting Riley handle it, but I kept my mouth shut.
Samuel fancied himself charismatic and diplomatic. Instead of securing evidence first, he wasted time negotiating with the man and personally escorted him to the hospital.
The man was a shameless scammer. Back in my previous life, my own firm approach had gained me nothing. How much worse would it be if Samuel tried?
He stormed off and insisted he would handle it himself, thinking it would be simple.
However, the scammer kept making endless demands, and whenever anything didn't go his way, he refused to cooperate or even speak.
Samuel tried to explain that he hadn't even hit the man, but the man shot back, "If you didn't hit me, why did you rush me to the hospital? And if you're not guilty, what's with all this stuff you brought?"
The scammer had repeated the X-rays several times. Nothing ever showed up, but he claimed pain everywhere. Within just a few days, Samuel had already paid out 20 thousand dollars.
On top of that, he came home to find his mother holding a cup of coffee and deliberately pouring it onto his laptop. The backup files nearby were all destroyed.
Finally, he snapped. Instead of blaming his mother, he stormed into my room, shouting like a madman. The kind, mild-mannered man everyone knew him as outside was gone.
"Why are you so angry?" I asked, clutching my belly and looking at him in disbelief.
You may also like
